


Stars Will Guide You Home

by brilliantbanshee



Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo [10]
Category: 9-1-1: Lone Star (TV 2020)
Genre: Bad Things Happen Bingo, Car Accidents, Hurt Carlos, Hurt TK, I wouldn't hold my breath though, M/M, Maybe they won't be so grossly in love as they usually are when I write them, Owen is really tired, Robbery, Update: they’re still grossly in love, Worried Carlos, Worried TK, prompts, worried owen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-22
Updated: 2020-04-23
Packaged: 2021-03-01 18:47:57
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,053
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23781859
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/brilliantbanshee/pseuds/brilliantbanshee
Summary: All Carlos wanted to do was take his boyfriend out for some good Tex-Mex. All TK wanted to do was spend time with Carlos. Neither of them had planned on being victims of a carjacking.Thankfully they have each other to get through this, and that should be more than enough (they hope).
Relationships: Carlos Reyes/TK Strand
Series: Bad Things Happen Bingo [10]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1209081
Comments: 49
Kudos: 260
Collections: 9-1-1 Lone Star ▶ Carlos Reyes / Tyler Kennedy "TK" Strand, Bad Things Happen Bingo





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This came from a prompt from an anon on tumblr who asked to see TK and Carlos in a sticky situation where they have to work together to get out of it for the "I will only slow you down square" and man, did I probably go way too intricate with this but who cares, I had fun.

TK still could not get over how much brighter the stars shined in Austin. 

He wasn’t sure exactly what it was. Most likely it was just the absence of the blinding lights of the city that never slept, but something told him it was more. Maybe it was something about the atmosphere - the air was certainly cleaner here. 

More and more he had started to think that it was simply a personal thing, his own perception altered by his experiences. Maybe it was an extended metaphor for how his life had changed since leaving New York. Things felt more clear here in general, everything shone a little bit brighter. He looked over Carlos and considered this. Maybe it wasn’t the city, maybe it was just the company. If anyone had the ability to alter the appearance of the cosmos by simply existing, TK’s money was on Carlos Reyes. 

“What are you thinking about?”

The question, spoken from the driver’s seat, startled TK back into the present. He looked over to see Carlos giving him a curious look. “Nothing,” he answered hastily, but at Carlos’s skeptical eyebrow, he elaborated, “I was just noticing how much brighter the stars were here versus New York.”

Carlos gave him a cocky grin, “Chalk one up for Texas - good to know we have some bragging rights over the Big Apple.”

“Well, That’s not the _only_ thing I like more in Texas. I think your state has a few more things going for it.”

“Like what?”

“Like the fact that you live here.”

Carlos burst out laughing, “Oh my god Ty, that is so cheesy. But still sweet, I will accept it.”

TK gave him a coy grin, “You’d better.” 

Carlos chuckled again, shaking his head as they continued driving down the dark road, “Who would have ever guessed what a sap you are?”

“I have many layers.” 

Carlos chuckled again and the car lapsed into a comfortable silence. They continued this way for several minutes, enjoying the drive back to the city. TK let his mind wander again, only to be brought back to reality when he noticed Carlos glancing in the rearview mirror and frowning. 

“Everything okay?” he asked. 

“I’m not sure,” Carlos answered, gazing into the mirror again, “Is it just me or has that car been following us for a while?” 

TK looked over his shoulder at the car behind them. It was a nondescript pickup, black with a roof rack, just like half of the cars he saw on a regular basis in Austin. 

He shrugged, “I haven’t really been paying attention, but maybe they’re just going the same way? We are heading back to the city after all.” 

Carlos didn’t look convinced, “Maybe, but something just feels off about it.”

TK studied his boyfriend. His expression was tense, his entire body speaking of worry, “If something doesn’t feel right to you, I trust your instincts. What do we do about it?”

“There’s a farm road coming up ahead. I’ll turn down it, and if they follow, something is up for sure.”

“And what do we do after they have followed us down the murder road?”

“Then, we call the police and keep driving. And it’s not a murder road.” 

TK nodded, already pulling his phone out, “Sounds like a plan to me, and it sounds like a murder road.”

Carlos ignored his jab and glanced into the rearview again. The car was still there. He took a deep breath and nodded, “Alright, here we go.” Without another word, he swung the Camaro onto the narrow road to the left. 

The pickup followed. TK and Carlos locked eyes briefly before TK looked down at his phone, swiping the lock screen open to place a call. 

The pickup slammed into the rear of the Camaro at the same moment he dialed the 9. The next few moments were filled with the sound of crunching metal, of yells of pain and surprise, and air rushing through the windows as the Camaro flipped through the air, landing with a deafening crash 15 feet off the road. Silence echoed through the car; the only sound the light crash of TK’s phone, falling from limp fingers as it hit the floor, the screen still illuminated to show a solitary 9 on the call screen. 

* * *

Carlos came to awareness slowly, blinking through the haze of pain and the din of ringing in his ears. His groggy mind was struggling to draw relevancy from the context - what had happened? Where was he? Why was he in pain?

He cautiously twisted his head around, but feeling no pain he allowed himself to move further. He was in his car - at least that answered one question. 

A voice interrupted his thoughts, a heavy Texas drawl sounding from somewhere nearby, “Looks like we got at least one live one fellas.” 

Carlos whipped his head around to see two men standing by the passenger window. They were leaning over a slumped figure - TK. Carlos felt his heart rate quicken. The other man was slumped over, Carlos could see blood trailing down his face from his hairline. 

“TK,” he managed to gasp out, “is he...?” 

The man who had spoken first shrugged, “I ain’t no doctor, how should I know?” 

Carlos struggled with his seatbelt, desperately trying to release it so he could check on TK, “Please, you need to call for help. He’s--”

But he was interrupted by the same man, “Actually, we don’t have to do anything. This works pretty well for our purposes.”

Carlos paused in his frantic movements, looking up at him with a sense of dawning horror, “What are you going to do?”

The man chuckled, “Well, we were originally going to carjack you. A good looking sportscar like this, figured it would catch a hefty price at my buddy’s chop shop. But then you had to go and crash it, so now I guess we’ll just have to rob you. Empty out your pockets.”

Carlos couldn’t believe this was happening. There were so many things wrong with this scenario, namely that TK was still _not moving_. 

“You guys have made a mistake,” he said instead, trying to keep his voice as steady as possible. 

The leader shrugged, not looking overly concerned, “Maybe so, but I guess we’ll just have to have that on our conscious, won’t we? Now, empty your pockets, or I will not hesitate to make sure this one is really dead.”

There was a click that Carlos knew too well. It was the sound of a safety being flicked off a handgun. The gun was pointed at TK’s head. Carlos couldn’t breathe. Had the gun been there all along? How hadn’t he noticed it? He forced himself to take a calming breath. It was fine, it would be fine. He was a cop. He knew how to do this. This was literally his job. Staying cool under pressure; making sure everyone gets out alive. 

He slowly raised his hands so they could see them. He moved slowly, deliberately, speaking calmly as he did so, “I thought you said you didn’t know if he was alive? What good does threatening a corpse do?” If they could just tell him that TK was alive that would at least be one element of this nightmare extinguished. 

“The thing is, I don’t give a shit if he’s alive or not. But I’m sure it matters a great deal to you. So, as I see it, this works pretty well for me. You don’t cooperate, I put a bullet in his head and bye-bye pretty boy; he’s dead for sure. You do as I ask and I leave you to it. Maybe he lives, maybe he doesn’t. The only shot you’ve got is doing what I say so I suggest you empty your goddamn pockets.”

“Okay, okay, I’m doing it!” Carlos says, voice shaking. It was clear these guys were not opposed to murder, so Carlos would cooperate. He wasn’t too sure they’d take kindly to finding out he was a cop, though. He slowly began emptying his pockets. He pulled out his wallet, his phone, and the loose change from dinner. He displayed them in his hands, holding them up so they could see. He was cooperating. 

“Good,” the leader sneered. “Now, lean over and hand them to my friend Jamie there,” he instructed, gesturing with the gun toward a lanky man who had appeared at Carlos’s window. 

Carlos did as he was told. He would do as he was asked, and he would get them both out of here. It would all be fine. 

“Mark, this guy’s a cop!” the third thug suddenly shouted, gesturing wildly to Carlos’s waistband, newly exposed as he leaned towards Jamie in the opposite window and sporting his badge. The leader - Mark, apparently - swore. Carlos shut his eyes. They were doomed. Their chances of survival had just gone from decent to doubtful. He cursed at himself, he should have been more careful. 

Mark was still swearing. His face was flushed and his eyes wild. In fact, the only good thing to have happened in the past 15 seconds is that he was so concerned with the new turn of events that he had removed the gun from TK’s head in favor of frantic pacing. A small victory maybe, but Carlos could breathe just a bit easier. 

“Okay, okay!” Mark exclaimed, abruptly coming to a halt, “Here’s what we’ll do. Take the phones and wallets, and let’s scram. We are going to get the hell out of here, now.”

“What about them?” Jamie asked, gesturing to TK and Carlos. Mark shrugged, “I’m no doctor, but I don’t think this one is going to make it,” he paused, gesturing to TK and Carlos’s heart sank. “As for the cop,” he looked at Carlos consideringly. “He did follow our rules, so it’s only fair we don’t kill him I suppose.”

“What if he goes to get help and then they find us?”

“Make it so he can’t go get help.” 

“So, what do we do to him?”

Mark shrugged and headed back to the truck, “Surprise me.” 

Jamie and the other man looked at each other. The other man shrugged and Jamie raised his gun.

A single gunshot rang out through the quiet night air; the bright stars the only witnesses.


	2. Chapter 2

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> TK wakes up and starts to problem solve.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow. I should do multi-chapter fics with cliffhangers more often. The response has really been something. 
> 
> But, I promised, so here's the second and final half of this story. I hope you all enjoy!

TK awoke to the overwhelming sound of crickets. He vaguely wondered if he had left the window open before falling asleep and if the locusts had descended upon the earth; because the crickets were never this loud in their backyard. 

He began to stretch, but his movements were quickly halted by a sharp pain in his side. He frowned. He didn’t recall hurting himself at work. He remembered it being a fairly normal day, no major calls. So calm in fact that he had even been able to sneak out a few minutes early to meet up with Carlos who wanted to take him to a small diner outside the city that he swore had the best pozole known to man. TK wasn’t 100% sure what pozole even was, but he was willing to try anything that included Carlos. 

Actually, now that he thought about it, dinner had already happened (and the pozole had been as amazing as advertised). Something wasn’t right. TK forced his eyes open and blinked several times, but his vision was still a little unfocused. He looked around. He was in the Camaro. He was in pain, and as his vision cleared, he could see more and more that much of the metal was mangled. Had they been in an accident? Where was Carlos? He abruptly moved his head, ignoring the pain. He needed to find Carlos, he had to make sure he was okay, he…

“TK?” Carlos’s voice; strained with something TK wasn’t familiar with, sounded from somewhere on his left, “Oh, thank god. I was so worried; how are you feeling?” 

TK didn’t even pause before answering, “Fine, I’m fine. What about you?”

Carlos scoffed, “You’ve been unconscious for the better part of an hour, I sincerely doubt you’re fine.” 

“And you’re avoiding the question. Carlos, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing’s wrong.”

“Carlos, you are a terrible liar. What’s wrong?”

Silence was his only answer. TK could feel his anxiety rising, “Carlos,” he tried again, “talk to me.”

“Promise me you won’t freak out?” Carlos asked and TK was finally able to place the breathy quality in his voice - it was pain. He could feel that sense of dread threatening to overtake him, but he pushed it down. He needed to focus, he needed to help. 

“I am making no such promises, but I’ll do my best. Now, tell me, Carlos, please.”

“I’ve been shot.”

There was a rushing sound in his ears, he could feel the panic trying to rise. No, now was not the time. He needed to keep himself together, he needed to help Carlos. He could freak out later. He took a deep breath and made a conscious effort to switch into first-responder mode. He could do this; he was good at this, “Where?”

“My leg.”

TK tried to turn to get a better look, but the way his seat was jammed he couldn’t rotate far enough. “I need you to be more specific. Is it in your calf or your thigh? How close is it to your knee?”

“My thigh, probably about 5 inches from my knee.”

TK nodded to himself. There was no good way to be shot in the leg, but if you had to, the thigh was slightly better. There was more room to avoid an artery than there was in the calf. 

“How badly is it bleeding?” 

Carlos hesitated before answering, “it’s...it’s bleeding a lot.”

TK shut his eyes and cursed. Without seeing it, he couldn’t say for sure, but if the femoral artery had been hit, Carlos needed help yesterday. He didn’t share this information though. “Are you able to put pressure on it?”

“I have been.”

“Good, how long has it been?”

“I don’t know for sure. It feels like it’s been an hour, but it could have been maybe 15-20 minutes? They took my watch and phone; I have no way of knowing for sure.” 

TK, who had been trying to free himself, paused in his actions, “Who took them? Carlos, what happened?”

“Remember those guys that were following us?” 

TK scanned his memories. There was something there. It was hazy, but there. His mind was still fuzzy. “Vaguely,” he answered. 

“Well, it turns out they were carjackers. When we crashed, they decided to just rob us as well. When they figured out I was a cop, they wanted to make sure I couldn’t go after them.”

“So they shot you,” TK supplied. Carlos gave a hum of affirmation. “Well, they can’t have been very good carjackers,” he noted, resuming his efforts to free himself, “since I’m fairly certain they’re the reason we crashed.” 

“I’ll be sure to mention it in their performance review,” Carlos replied dryly. 

TK ignored his sarcasm and kept his focus on the task at hand. After a few more moments of struggle, he managed to free himself of the seatbelt. He made a sound of triumph and turned to look at Carlos. His jubilation at defeating the seatbelt quickly faded when he saw the state the other man was in. He was pale and breathing quickly and shallowly, his face pinched in a grimace of pain. 

_Shock_ , his paramedic’s training provided, _brought on by blood loss_. 

He needed to get himself out, he needed to help Carlos. He turned to his door, examining the situation. He pushed on it experimentally. It didn’t resist, so he shoved his weight against it and tumbled out of the car, onto the ground. The various pains on his body suddenly made themselves known with a vengeance. He allowed himself a moment to feel it all before he pushed himself up. He would be fine, but Carlos - Carlos was in trouble. 

He pulled himself up from the ground and rushed over to the driver’s side of the car. When he arrived, he got his first good look at Carlos. Even in the low light of the night, he could tell this was bad. “Carlos,” he said softly, running a gentle hand through his hair.

He looked up at him, “TK, I’m fine, don’t worry about me. How are you?”

TK tried to laugh, but it came out strangled and strangely like a sob, “Don’t worry about you? Carlos, you’ve been shot. I think I reserve the right to worry a little bit.”

“But you’re hurt,” Carlos said, his voice weak and slightly slurred. TK could feel tears beginning to slide down his face. He hastily brushed them aside - he was in first responder mode, not worried boyfriend mode. He had to be; it was their only chance. 

But the sight of Carlos so weak and in so much pain was making it incredibly hard. 

“So are you, and you need to let me help you.” TK took his hand out of Carlos’s hair, ignoring his weak protest. He grasped the door instead, giving it an experimental pull. It gave, just a little. 

He pulled again, harder this time. The pain in his chest protested but he ignored it. He needed to get Carlos out of there so he could get a better look at his wound. He needed to save him. 

One final tug proved to be enough for the door to finally swing open. TK pushed it aside and moved quickly closer; hands on Carlos, looking for the wound. He finds the wetness of the blood without much of a problem - there is so much. Even in the darkness, he can tell that there is too much blood. His hands pause momentarily in their examination as he allows himself a moment to shut his eyes and feel the weight of the panic threatening to overtake him. 

But only a moment. 

Then that moment is over, and he is back in first-responder mode. “Okay Carlos, the good news is I don’t think an artery was hit, likely just a vein. Which still isn’t good, but it gives us some more time to work before the situation gets dire. Either way, we’re going to need to get you out of here so I can get a tourniquet on that.”

Carlos murmured something that sounded like an agreement, which TK took as a go-ahead to gently ease him from the car to the ground outside. There wasn’t much more light out here, but he still had a better view of the wound. On the plus side, TK knew he was probably right about it not being an arterial bleed. On the downside, it...was not good. There was still far too much blood soaking Carlos’s jeans and the man in question was far too pale to make TK feel even remotely confident about this situation. TK pulled off his belt and wound it around the wound, tightening it as much as possible to create a tourniquet. He sat back on his heels to examine his work, and then glanced up at Carlos in concern. He had been quiet through the entire process, which was most certainly not a good sign. 

“Hey, Carlos, talk to me. How are you feeling?”

There were several long moments of silence in which TK could feel his panic threatening to rise again, but finally, Carlos spoke, “I’ll be fine, but you should go.”

TK gave him an incredulous look. He could not have heard that right, “I’m sorry, what?”

“You should go. Go find help and send them back here. It’s not like I’m going anywhere.”

So TK had heard right, he just couldn’t believe what he was hearing. “No, absolutely not. Are you insane?!”

“You need to go, I’ll only slow you down.”

“No! I am not leaving you!” TK was aware he sounded a little crazed, but he didn’t care. “I am not leaving my boyfriend to bleed out on the side of the road, or to get eaten by wolves!” 

“There are no wolves in Texas, TK.”

“Coyotes, then! I don’t care what kind of pack animal is prowling around here, I am not leaving you and you had just better accept that. We are going to get out of this together.”

“Okay.”

“If you think-,” TK halted suddenly processing what Carlos had said, “did you just agree with me?”

“I did. If there’s anything I’ve learned over the past few months it is that there is no arguing with you when you’ve made up your mind and while I am still against this idea, I’d rather not bleed out trying to out stubborn you.”

TK rolled his eyes. Even in the aftermath of trauma, Carlos could still find the energy to give him shit. “Well, good,” he declared, “I’m glad we’re on the same page.” 

He stood up and looked around. From the looks of it, they weren’t too far off the main road - one of the very few good things they had going for them. If they could get out to the main road, they just might be able to catch a passing car. Though, not having any idea what time it was, TK could only hope it was not too late for traffic. Still, their chances would be much better there than here, on the side of a dirt road. 

“Well, no point in waiting around here I guess. We’d better get a move on, you ready?” he asked Carlos, who was still on the ground. 

“If you’re going to ignore my very logical argument of leaving me behind and insist on dragging me along even though I am only going to slow you down then I guess I’m as ready as I’ll ever be.” 

“I am.”

Carlos shrugged, “Let’s do this then.”

TK leaned down to help him up and then threw one of Carlos’s arms around his shoulder. He almost staggered under the extra weight, but he righted himself and moved forward. They moved slowly and deliberately towards the main road, walking in silence as they focused on moving forward and staying upright. The pain in TK’s chest was back with a vengeance, but he forced himself to ignore it. This was their only shot, and there was no way he was going to risk it. 

They made it to the main road and TK allowed himself a brief rest. “You know,” he said to Carlos, “if I wasn’t such a fan of your physique, I would really be complaining at lugging you and your muscles around.”

Carlos responded with a weak chuckle, “Is this you finally admitting that I am stronger than you?”

“Not a chance.”

They continued on, Carlos doing his best to support his own weight, but he was too weak. TK was essentially carrying him, but he refused to slow down. They were going to get out of this, he was going to make sure of that. 

It seemed as if they had been walking for ages, but for all TK knew, it could have been only a matter of minutes. As much as he wanted to pause, to take a break, he had a feeling that the moment he stopped, he would be done. So he kept pushing.

He was so focused on the simple act of putting one foot in front of the other that he didn’t hear Carlos say his name the first time.

“TK,” he repeated more urgently, “there’s a car coming!”

TK skidded to a halt and turned to look over his shoulder. Sure enough, there was a car heading down the road towards them. Hope rushed over him like a comforting wave. Maybe they would actually make it out of this after all. He gently slid Carlos’s arm from his shoulder and lowered him to the ground. Then he runs towards the road, waving his arms frantically in the air. 

Somewhere in the back of his mind, he knows that in any other situation he would be yelling at anyone else for taking such a risk, but he’s desperate. Thankfully, the car slows to a halt. The driver’s side door opens and a middle-aged guy steps out. 

“Sir,” he says as he approaches TK, “are you okay?”

TK waves off his concern, “I’m fine, but my boyfriend - he was shot. We were carjacked and they shot him and he’s lost a lot of blood, he needs to get to a hospital.”

He was aware of how frantic and crazy he sounded, but he couldn’t bring himself to care. They had help; they might actually get out of this alive. 

The man’s eyes grew wide, but he nodded, “Okay, where is he?”

TK gestured to the side of the road where he had left Carlos, “He’s right…” he began to walk towards the side of the road, but he stumbled. He was going down and there was nothing he could do to stop himself. He felt hands grabbing for him and he could hear Carlos’s voice, still so weak, calling for him, panic lacing his tone. He tried to push himself forward, they were so close! 

But he had pushed his battered body past the limit; the choice was no longer his. 

The world faded to black without his consent, Carlos’s voice desperately calling out to him slowly fading into the abyss into which he was falling. 

* * *

“I swear TK, if I didn’t know any better I would think you were _trying_ to give me gray hair.”

TK blinked his eyes fully open, his vision adjusting to the dimly lit room around him lit by the early morning light filtering in through the solitary window. 

“I mean, a carjacking? Really? It can’t be natural for one person to be able to find so much trouble.” 

TK’s gaze found his dad in the chair next to his hospital bed, because that’s where he was, apparently. Though Owen’s words were glib, his face betrayed the worry he was actually feeling. TK shut his eyes again, willing his head to stop spinning, “Love you too dad.” 

Owen’s voice softened as he leaned forward, his words now echoing the worry so evident in his expression, “How are you feeling son?”

“Like I was hit by a truck.” 

Owen hummed in agreement, “Not too far off from what we’ve been able to put together so far.”

TK looked at Owen in confusion for a moment before everything started to come back. The crash, the carjacking, Carlos…

He bolted upright in the bed, ignoring the sharp pain in his ribs, “Dad, Carlos was hurt! What happened to him? Is he…?”

Owen put a calming hand on TK’s shoulder, “TK, relax, it’s okay, Carlos is fine.”

TK allowed himself to breathe again, taking a deep breath. Once he was sure his son wasn’t about to work himself into a panic attack, Owen continued, “You both showed up at the hospital a few hours ago. Carlos was rushed right to surgery, but he’s out now and he’s going to be fine. He’s going to need some PT for his leg, but he will be completely fine in time. You, on the other hand, almost gave me a heart attack. I have to say, I do not appreciate getting a call that you have been admitted to the hospital unconscious in the middle of the night.”

TK winced, “Sorry,” he said softly, looking down at his hands in his lap. He heard Owen swear softly beside him, “I didn’t mean it like that TK. God, I’m sorry, I’m just stressed and tired and I was so scared, but it’s not your fault. There is nothing you could have done to prevent this, as much as I hate it.”

TK looked up at his dad, wincing when the movement caused fresh pain, “What happened? I don’t remember much besides the crash and Carlos being shot. I know I got us both out of the car and made a tourniquet for his leg and got back to the main road, but the details are still pretty fuzzy.”

Owen gave a weary sigh, “At the moment, that’s pretty much all we know too. The couple that found you said that you ran out into the road to flag them down, said something about a carjacking, and that your boyfriend had been shot before collapsing. The guy sounded pretty shaken up, I’m pretty sure you scared the crap out of him, running out of nowhere in the middle of the night with blood all over your face.” 

TK winced in sympathy. He hadn’t meant to scare anyone, but when it was phrased like that…

Owen continued, “Other than that, I can tell you that you have a severe concussion, several broken ribs, and a bruised lung. Which, coincidentally, is the same lung that was damaged when you were shot and your doctor is not too happy about that, so keep that in mind when you talk to him.”

TK gave a weak laugh, but then abruptly sobered, “What about the guys who did this? Have they found them at all?”

Owen shrugged, “APD found the Camaro and are working on finding them using tire tracks and paint residue left on the car from the collision. One of their own was hurt in this; I wouldn’t want to be those guys when they are found.” 

They sit quietly for a few moments, Owen allowing his son the time he needs to process what had happened and the new information he had received. It’s TK who speaks first, “You said Carlos was in recovery. Can I see him?” 

Owen gives him a soft smile and runs an affectionate hand through his hair, “As soon as the doctor comes by to check you out now that you’re awake, we’ll ask. I promise.”

* * *

An hour later TK was in a wheelchair, being pushed by Owen towards the room that held Carlos. There is an anxiety building within him, but he’s not sure why. Carlos was here, he was safe, he would be okay. He had been told that and reassured by his dad several times, but until he saw him it wouldn’t be real.

The reached the door to Carlos’s room and Owen paused at the threshold. “Are you sure you’re ready for this?” he asked TK with concern, “You’re pretty hurt yourself, and you’ve just been through something traumatic—”

But TK cut him off, “Dad, I need to see him. I need to know for sure he’s okay with my own eyes. I can’t have the last image of him in my mind be how bad he looked on the side of that road. I won’t be able to really relax until I see him.”

Owen sighed, but nodded in understanding, “Okay.” With that, they entered the room.

TK had been preparing himself the whole journey over here, but nothing could have truly prepared him for how weak Carlos looked in this moment. He was still far too pale, though the absence of blood soaking his jeans was a huge improvement in TK's opinion. He was hooked up to machines and laying so still that TK momentarily feared the worst.

But as he got closer the signs that Carlos was in fact breathing grew more evident and TK relaxed ever so slightly. Owen pushed him up to the side of the bed and TK leaned forward to grab one of Carlos’s hands. He gripped it tightly, savoring the warmth that emanated from it; a sign that the person it belonged to was alive. They stood in silence for several minutes, Owen’s reassuring hand a steadying presence on his shoulder. The doctors had said that the anesthesia should be wearing off any moment now, and TK studied the man before him for any sign of movement, any indication that he was ready to rejoin the land of the living.

Finally, his eyes opened. The sight of his warm brown eyes was almost enough to move TK to tears, but he held it in. The last thing Carlos needed was for him to be an emotional wreck right now. He shifted in the bed, blinking slowly and gazing around the room before his gaze landed on TK. They looked at each other for a long moment, unspoken words flowing through their gaze.

“Hi,” Carlos said softly.

“It’s good to see you awake,” TK replied, hoping Carlos hadn’t noticed the tears that had crept into his voice.

Owen cleared his throat, “Carlos,” he said warmly, “it’s so good to see you conscious. I’m really glad you’re okay.”

Carlos smiled, “Thanks, me too.”

Owen grinned at him, “Well, I’m going to find, somewhere else to be right now. I’m sure you would both appreciate some privacy right now. Just remember TK,” he said, directing his gaze to his son and his voice growing sterner, “don’t overdo it.”

“I won’t dad,” TK promised, with only the slightest eye roll. Owen nodded, gave him a quick squeeze of the shoulder and then with another nod to Carlos, he was gone.

Now alone in the room, they studied each other again. TK scanned Carlos for any sign of further injury. Besides some cuts on his face and arms, you wouldn’t even have been able to guess that he had nearly died a few hours ago. Somethings were funny like that, he supposed.

Carlos was the first to break the silence, “You look like hell,” he said, “but I am so glad to see you conscious.” 

TK gave a dry laugh, “And they say romance is dead. Who knew all I had to do to impress you would be maintain consciousness?”

Carlos rolled his eyes at him, reaching out to take his hand in his, “I’m serious Tyler, you scared me out there. You were moving and talking and then you were just, down. I thought you had keeled over, or that you’d been bleeding internally or something. That you had sacrificed yourself to save me and I _hated_ it.”

TK wanted to interject, but something told him that he needed to say this, so he let him continue, “I told you to leave me, to go ahead to find help, but you insistent because you are so goddamn stubborn all the time and I thought that saving me had cost you your life and I…”

Carlos trailed off, shutting his eyes against the tears that were beginning to roll down his face. TK’s heart ached for him, this man that he loved so much. He leaned forward, wrapping his arms around him as best he could. He felt Carlos lean into his touch. Once he had had a moment, he spoke, “That wasn’t your choice to make Carlos. It was mine, and I would make it again. I would make it a hundred times if it meant that you lived. And even if something did happen to me, I would never regret it – not for a moment.”

Carlos made a sound of protest, but TK kept talking, “I’m serious Carlos, I would do it again. We face things together, or we don’t face them at all. I will never leave you behind, I promise.”

A heavy silence hung over the pair for several minutes before it was broken by Carlos.

“I only hate it because I love you so much and I don’t want anything to ever happen to you,” he said, his voice so soft he was nearly whispering.

TK nodded into Carlos’s hair, “I know, because I feel the same way.”

TK hoped that they had fulfilled their quota of bad luck because he knew that Carlos spoke the truth. He knew that if the roles were reversed, Carlos would have done the same, no matter the odds. He knew that if anything like this happened again, they might not be so lucky. The thought settled in his mind, joining the tapestry of his fears and anxieties. The things he hated the most in the world were the things he couldn’t control, and this soundly fell in that category.

All he could do was love this man – the kind, caring, wonderful man – with all he had, and hope for the best.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thanks again to the tumblr anon who gave me this prompt that turned into a 6k story that I wrote in 2 days. I honestly think your ideas have turned into some of the best stories I've written, so thanks for that. 
> 
> Did you like it? Was it worth the wait? Let me know in the comments! I've been doing all this writing as a way of coping with this situation we're all in, but the comments make it even better. I really appreciate everyone who has taken the time.
> 
> I'm sure I'll be back soon with another story. In the meantime, stay safe and sane!

**Author's Note:**

> The second half will be up tomorrow, I decided to leave it on a cliffhanger for once because it was just too good to resist. 
> 
> Leave me a comment to let me know what you think or even just to yell at me for leaving you hanging - I'll accept it, but I'm not sorry.
> 
> Come find me on [tumblr](https://brillliantbanshee.tumblr.com/)


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